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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. court — for sport
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. current — happening now
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. season — of the year
  7. current — electric
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. season — in sport
  10. file — a tool
  11. court — of law
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. firm — a company
  14. court — of a king
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. file — a document
  17. pitch — completely
  18. file — a line of people
  19. firm — steady
  20. firm — decided
  21. plane — a tool
  22. current — of water
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. plane — in geometry

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com